The Total Consecration to Mary

The consecration has to be a free and conscious act,accepted and lived as a gift. To prepare for this act, it is good to know the Church’s teachings about the Mother of God, and deepen the understanding and knowledge of the total consecration through appropriate reading.

Biblical Evidence for Marian Devotion

The first three Evangelists were mainly concerned with tracing Christ's ancestry as Son of Man, and therefore, as Son of Mary. St. Matthew, writing for the Hebrews, stresses Christ's descent from Abraham. St. Luke, disciple of St. Paul, traces Christ's origin to Adam, the father of the human race. Yet both writers were at pains to point our that Mary's Son fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah about the Messiah. He was to be born of a virgin, to become Emmanuel, which means, "God with us." Luke gives a long account of the Angel's visit to Mary, to announce to her that the Child will be holy and will be called the "Son of God" (Luke 1:36).

St. John follows the same pattern. He introduces Mary as the Mother of Jesus when he began his public ministry. In answer to her wishes ,Christ performed the miracle of changing water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana in Galilee. What happened then has continued ever since...

It is also St. John who tells us that Mary stood under the Cross of Calvary, as her Son was dying for our salvation. Speaking of Joh, Jesus told his Mother, "This is your son." To John, he said of Mary, "this is your Mother." The Apostle John represented all of us. On Good Friday, therefore, Christ made his Mother the supernatural Mother of the human race and made us her spiritual children.

(Fr. John Hardon, SJ for Spes Nostra magazine)

Saint Maximilian's Spirituality

Fr. Kolbe thought of the Mission of the Immaculata (MI) as a global vision of Catholic life under a new form--a bond with the Immaculata, our universal Mediatrix before Jesus. The consecration to the Immaculata is ultimately a converting to an evangelical life: a means to holiness and to apostolic commitment understood as a battle against evil--in oneself, in the surroundings, in the world-- through the mediation and under the protection of the Immaculata. Fr. Faccenda spoke of the need for complete confidence in Mary: consecration is “ to put our hand in her hand, to grip it strongly, because it is the hand of one who is Mother and Mediatrix, help and hope. Then, let her love make us pure as she is, while by her example and word she repeats to us: ‘Do whatever he tells you’”(Jn 2:5).

Belonging to and identifying with the Immaculata have an intrinsically apostolic value, because “the Virgin Mary is the model of that motherly love with which all who join in the Church’s apostolic mission for the rebirth of humanity should be animated.”xii The essence of the MI spirituality was to entrust all to the Mother of God. Kolbe often spoke of the totality and the boundlessness of the consecration to the Immaculata; he repeatedly affirmed that he wanted to live, to work and to suffer for the Immaculata. He viewed this consecration as a transformation: “She will make you like herself.”xiii

Father Faccenda Shares the Kolbean Spirituality

Fr. Faccenda sought ways to incorporate this transformation into "other Marys" as spiritual program. Making one’s own Mary’s attitudes was a concrete way of this becoming her. As described in Paul VI’s Marialis Cultus, Mary is “the attentive Virgin,” “the Virgin in prayer,” “the Virgin-Mother” and “the Virgin presenting offerings.” Fr. Faccenda presents the four realities of total consecration--“Four Pillars of Total Consecration:” 1) the interior life, understood as a constant interplay between contemplation and action; 2) the obedience of faith, as a way to live in full conformity to God’s will, humbly and generously, and allowing the Immaculate to guide our lives; 3) heroic charity, that impels us to love all people in a continuous gift of self; 4) the offering of our whole being, accepting and loving sorrows and sufferings so as to cooperate with Christ in the salvation of the world. (Originally appeared on udayton.edu. Written by Rossella Bignami, Father Kolbe Missionary)

All of our centers offer preparation and various occasions for the total consecration.To see the next opportunity in California, click here.

More Resources

The Miraculous Medal

The Miraculous Medal owes its origin to the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Chapel of the Rue du Bac, Paris, in the year 1830. She appeared as the Immaculate Conception to Catherine Laboure’, a 22 year old novice with the Daughters of Charity and a future saint.

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Marian Spirituality

Visit the "Marian Spirituality" page under resources. There you will find links to Kolbean Meditations, Marian Myths (Busted), and Reflections... with more always coming!